Thousands more families take up free early education

Latest figures published by the government show parents and carers of 1,264,000 children took up the free entitlement. The number of providers offering the entitlement has also increased, by 462, since 2011.

London has the lowest take up rate in England, with 89 per cent of the three- to four-year-old population in the capital benefiting from the free entitlement.

The North East, Yorkshire and the Humber, and the South West have the highest take-up rates, of 98 per cent of their local three- and four-year-old population.

The government is to pilot its free early years entitlement for two-year-olds in 10 areas this September, backed by £760m funding.

Children’s minister Sarah Teather said: “Parents value free early education and know that it gives their child the best possible start in life, and allows them to learn through play and stories.

"It provides the perfect preparation for school life, and I am delighted that even more young children are gaining through early education.”

Meanwhile, the government has released the findings of a survey of parents. This found that a third of parents of two-year-olds use informal childcare arrangements through friends and family.

A quarter of those surveyed said it was difficult to pay for childcare, with lone mothers and workless families prevalent among this group, while just 40 per cent of parents of disabled children felt local childcare providers were able to cater for their child’s disability or illness.

Purnima Tanuku, chief executive of National Day Nurseries Association (NDNA), welcomed the fact that increasing numbers of children are benefitting from the free entitlement.
 
But she warned that government funding for three- and four-year-old places is not covering the costs of provision in many early years settings.
 
“Failure to cover costs threatens the sustainability of childcare providers and pushes up the cost of childcare for parents who are buying additional hours, as settings seek to recover costs through the fees they charge for hours paid for by parents," she said.